I wonder if at some point we'll actually lose the freedom to pick the amount/speed of DRAM we want, or if this will remain limited to select embedded use-cases.

nevcairiel:

I wonder if at some point we'll actually lose the freedom to pick the amount/speed of DRAM we want, or if this will remain limited to select embedded use-cases.

Eventually we will get to the point where the only way to increase ram speed will be to have it on package with the CPU, you can already see this a little bit with how overclocking focused boards often only have 2 ram slots placed as close as they can get them to the cpu to increase ram overclocking ability. So I wouldn't mind it at all if we loose the ability for upgrading ram or changing ram speed without replacing the whole CPU package, as long as the ram speeds and efficiencies on those packages are better than what would be possible with the current method of having separate ram modules.

I would very much mind loosing the freedom to choose what amount and what kind of RAM I will have in my system. There are huge differences in both price and performance between modules and I doubt that either intel or AMD will have so much combinations to satisfy everyone's needs. So even though I agree that to get better performance something like this must happen, I hope that they would introduce possibility to install RAM modules as a service or DIY slot on the CPU, but I guess that is far into the future, as they first need to make it a reality and show that it is actually significantly better than what we have now.

Couldn't we get a bunch of truly fast RAM inside the CPU package, but then the user could add more in the typical DIMM form? It would be slower, but if the system ran out of what's shipped with the CPU, the system could use it. It would still be faster than an SSD (bandwidth and latency wise). Who knows how much the CPU package would initially ship with anyway.

nevcairiel:

I wonder if at some point we'll actually lose the freedom to pick the amount/speed of DRAM we want, or if this will remain limited to select embedded use-cases.

Honestly, if AMD starts selling 8C/16T APUs w/ solid iGPU + 8/16GB HBM2 or other embedded memory... people will not complain. 45W CPU part + 85W iGPU part + 10~20W memory + VRMs 25W of heat. Size of that system... Tiny, but nasty gaming box. (Just 220~250W PSU.) Due to actual heat producing components being nicely in one place, cooling solution can be quite optimized. And what that can do for mobile...

K.S.:

Yeah "right to repair" n all that.. definitely skirting further n further away and closer to none at all. No way the CPU OEMs are going to match anything anywhere near the current dedicated modular RAM market - it's just not profitable or realistic Any smart memory manufacturer is lobbying to protect their piece of the market. Not like they are against performance - loss of profit. Likely a halfway solution between them & the cpu makers will arise.

This is no different than HBM for GPU and that's not much different than GDDR5. Memory is integrated one way or another. Those "Memory Assembling Companies" are doing exactly that. Memory chips themselves are made by very few. Is memory stick in danger with this? No. Server business requires components which can be easily replaced and upgraded. Is that problem for notebooks/tablets? No, tablets can't be upgraded in 99% of cases and those which have actual slot of any sort (M.2) are quite new. In notebook market, most of them are not upgraded through their life cycle in terms of system memory. It is nice option, but if it is integrated, it trades ability to exchange memory for smaller thickness and possibly power efficiency. And as long as that reduces cost of device, one can pay for extra warranty.

I already though about it since first Ryzen came, if we are getting to the point where 8C/16T can be bought for reasonable price- what going to come later to make you upgrade? Now we are looking for 16C/32T Desktop CPU's- what could be a reason for upgrade in 2021+? I think in Future desktop CPU's will come with Ram on CPU, Starting at 4GB low end~ upto 64GB high end - same story like on Ram/Storage on smartphones. This way AMD/Intel gonna keep making good $$$, for example: 8C/16T comes with 16GB Ram, for you 8C/16T is more then enough but you want more then 16GB- then you have to spend more and buy 12C/24T with 24GB or 16C/32T with 32GB and etc'. On HEDT/Servers - they will keep using Ram modules for long time. P.S- Memory manufactures will be happy with this method- think about it: for years you could upgrade your MB/CPU and keep using old DDR3 memory or DDR4 memory= no new sales for Memory manufactures , but if you will be force to replace slower CPU with built in Ram with newer CPU with built in Ram- then Memory manufactures just sold you another memory modules!.

well AMD have well promising HBM, i think is only promising and at the its not that big deal, expensive, many compromises, DDR5X/DDR6 looks better with lowest price... embeded ram is ok for oem, bude bad for rest, i agree with HWgeek i see in future total bad combination... week cpu with so many ram, strong cpu with half of this ram etc say simple, no good choices :/ or in best case good choices but with abyssmal price

I love how 4 years ago it was like:"We don't need more than 4 cores, cpu's are perfectly fine for now" after there's some competition, everyone is like: "We have to push to 10 cores & use 3D stacking techniques" https://media.giphy.com/media/YzvPqrOVoS9tC/giphy.gif

HardwareCaps:

I love how 4 years ago it was like:"We don't need more than 4 cores, cpu's are perfectly fine for now" after there's some competition, everyone is like: "We have to push to 10 cores & use 3D stacking techniques" https://media.giphy.com/media/YzvPqrOVoS9tC/giphy.gif

http://www.atariage.com/forums/gallery_ips/gallery/album_1027/gallery_35324_1027_5170.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/GDXw7p9.png *Not an actual quote

Kaarme:

Couldn't we get a bunch of truly fast RAM inside the CPU package, but then the user could add more in the typical DIMM form? It would be slower, but if the system ran out of what's shipped with the CPU, the system could use it. It would still be faster than an SSD (bandwidth and latency wise). Who knows how much the CPU package would initially ship with anyway.

I can see it being just a large L4 cache. 4GB would be enough to enable low-end PC's without any extra RAM at all. It would obviously have to be much much faster, and lower latency than DRAM, otherwise there is literally no point. 4 or 8GB of HBM on package could be used as L4, and shared with the integrated GPU. The RAM would then be the next Memory storage tier, and would be able to be a lot slower. The Large L4 would mitigate memory problems. I could quite possibly happen, especially if one of the chiplets could be replaced by HBM. I see that happening probably in the Threadrippers first, for HPC work, and then the Mobile chips, for integrated graphics. Eventually, it would hit the enthusiast line on AM4 or AM5.

Did any1 tested the influence of GDDR5 on ZEN in Subor Z+ console?

Seems like a rather logical evolution to making an APU with AMD's chiplets. The thing that hurts the APU's the most today is memory bandwidth so this solves that issue getting it on die. Looking at how much DRAM samsung is getting into a phone, 12GB, it may be possible we see system ram for APU's on die. LIkely this would start on console APU's, and trickle out.

It was only a matter of time until this started to happen. Many ARM platforms have been doing this for years.

Kaarme:

Couldn't we get a bunch of truly fast RAM inside the CPU package, but then the user could add more in the typical DIMM form? It would be slower, but if the system ran out of what's shipped with the CPU, the system could use it. It would still be faster than an SSD (bandwidth and latency wise). Who knows how much the CPU package would initially ship with anyway.

I was thinking the same thing. As far as I'm concerned, we can think of this like an L4 cache. I'm glad they're pushing for HBM and more memory channels too, since that's exactly what AMD needs right now. I think if AMD supplies 0.5GB per CPU core and maybe 0.25GB per GPU core, that ought to be plenty sufficient to start with, as long as you get to supplement with discrete DDR4 memory. The way I see it, DDR4 is relatively slow but it's fast enough where it should be able to load in new data without being a bottleneck, while the integrated RAM is more for "current data". I guess one major concern I have is how much this may hinder overclocking. But, it looks like we're heading to a point of x86 PCs becoming SoCs. Although it's a necessary evolution, it's a little sad to me, in that this is the beginning of the end for hardware enthusiasts.

theoneofgod:

http://www.atariage.com/forums/gallery_ips/gallery/album_1027/gallery_35324_1027_5170.jpg

I really hate that quote, not just because Gates never said it, but also because it's always taken out of context. 640K, at the time, was enough for anybody.

Finally 😀 I know of this for some time. But we need 3D+2.5D Stacked GPUs chiplets w Infinity Fabric + HBM

Sincerely, i don't see why anyone would be concerned by upgradability, i think this is the right, and probably the only way foward. 1. This can co-exists with DDR ram stick modules. 2. Smartphones are like this already, seems most people don't care. 3. The major market for this being small portable notebooks, ultrabooks, and laptops, are generally not upgradable anyway, and when they are most people don't upgrade ever. 4. The overall cost of the chiplets will be in no time very cheap. 5. This style will probably be sold in packages so in the end will be cheaper to the end consumer, with highly optimized cooling systems. 6. This could work as a L4 cache or not as someone said already, and let's remeber that Non volatile "rams" are coming to the consumer market, this could be extremely compact with it. 7. This could be the next step to modular systems, as antagonic this statement can sound, with AM4 as and example, more optimized cooling systems, less components on the motherboard itself, reduced motherboard footprint, problems like having to upgrade a motherboard just to support the next memory technology will not need to exist. Ex: APU+HBM2.0 "AM5" socket, will probably be able to be upgraded to APU+HBM3.0/4.0, since the limitation will not be on the MB traces, but you be limited maybe on the I/O speed of last gen. This will be highly dependent on MB suppliers and CPU sockets...

With apus this is not a surprise apus are very much bottlenecked by ddr4 and ddr5 will not be enough. Tiered storage is how computers work since forever l1-l2-l3-ddr now it will be l1-l2-l3-stuck-ddr

Broadwell DT already did this with 128MB of EDRAM for the integrated gpu. When using discrete graphics it acted like a L4 cache. It gave some serious performance boosts in games. It's a shame this tech didn't take off more.

There is a place and market for such an implementation. Most OEM products could be done like that, notebooks as well as embedded versions ofc. Generally products which are hardly upgraded in performance hardware (rather with more storage if at all). That summed up makes what, 90% of the PC market?

We already have multiple types of memory on our computers: first is L cache, then DRAM, and then HDD/SDD. If they put ultra fast DRAM inside the CPU, it ill just act as a huge L cache. I'm sure we could pair "slower" DRAM externally as we do now. So imagine a +1Gb ultra fast L cache and then adding your typical 8/16/32Gb DDR4/5 externally. And of course having an APU with CPU+GPU+DRAM makes affordable PC's even more affordable.